Driving skills of soldiers based at Colchester Garrison were put to the test in a fun competition with a serious message.

East Anglian Daily Times: Private Olayiwola, 23, from Nigeria tests out his driving skills with a bucket of water on the bonnet of the Landrover.Private Olayiwola, 23, from Nigeria tests out his driving skills with a bucket of water on the bonnet of the Landrover. (Image: Crown Copyright 2015: This image may be used for current news purposes only.)

Teams from units making up 16 Air Assault Brigade took on nine tests in a bid to be crowned overall winner.

The Top Gear-style challenge included driving round a circuit with a bucket of water on the bonnet, a rapid tyre change, and judging speed without a speedometer.

A team from 216 (Parachute) Signal Squadron was the winner and the soldiers were presented with a trophy made from salvaged vehicle parts, with the Safe and Skilled Driving Competition now becoming an annual event for the brigade.

Sergeant Jo Foy of 16 Medical Regiment, event organiser, said: “This is about improving road safety awareness to reduce the number of accidents our soldiers are involved in, both in military vehicles and when they are driving off duty.

“Road safety is a serious topic but we’ve put a bit of fun and competiveness into it to engage our soldiers, who have enjoyed it and learnt a lot at the same time.”

Craftsman Carl Rogers, 24, was a member of the winning team. He said: “I’ve learnt a lot about road safety and had to think about things like braking distances that I haven’t really considered since my driving test.

“It’s always good to win and we will go back to the squadron and spread what we have done and learnt about road safety.”